Orban refuses parliament seat after loss, vows party renewal

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will not take up his seat in parliament following his Fidesz party's landslide defeat in the recent election. Orban, who has held a parliamentary seat for 36 years and served as premier for 16, stated he is needed for reorganizing the nationalist side instead. He plans to seek re-election as party leader at Fidesz's June congress. The defeat was hailed by liberals as evidence that right-wing populism has peaked. Orban, backed by Donald Trump, was the only EU leader maintaining close ties to Vladimir Putin and used his veto to delay an EU loan to Ukraine. He previously rebounded after losing the 2002 election by stepping back and returning to power eight years later.